


Gabriel's Plot

by Neeko96



Series: Gabriel Matchmaker [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrinette fluff, Alya gets a clue, Bad Puns, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, F/M, Fluff, Gabriel matchmaker, Gabriel's parenting skills need work, Lila salt, adrien stands up for himself, evil plot for a good cause
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-03
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:42:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26782351
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neeko96/pseuds/Neeko96
Summary: Gabriel is frustrated over all the problems pilling up with his son, and to top it off, he was being defiant. After a particularly heated argument involving a certain girl, however, Gabriel has an epiphany. It will be the solution to all of his problems and all he needed to do was give his son a push in the right direction. Basically a Gabriel matchmaker fic.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Gabriel Matchmaker [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1999675
Comments: 59
Kudos: 649





	1. Genius Plot

Gabriel glared daggers at the latest bit of creative writing the tabloids had made about his son. They'd really been on a roll for the last several months all starting when his son broke up with Kagami Tsurugi. After they painted that as some sort of secret arranged marriage/result of bad blood between he and her mother, the next few stories revolved around his son's series of nonexistent lovers. All they needed was Adrien in a picture with any girl and smiling, then poof, new girlfriend. It was really starting to grate on his nerves!

"And when they finally leave Adrien's relationship alone, what happens!? They mock him as a terrible heir to my legacy!" Gabriel had already spent around the last decade being disappointed his son couldn't design his way out of a wet paper bag. Now he had it shoved in his face again with bold print! He certainly wished these low wage vultures would just man up and come after him directly if they had a problem, and not his son. Even if it annoyed him to no end, it wasn't Adrien's fault he didn't have the talent for designing.

"Gabriel?" Nathalie called after knocking on his door.

"Yes?" He nearly spat as he put the magazine down.

"Adrien has returned."

The designer looked at his watch and bit back a growl. "Send him in; I need to speak with him."

"Of course." A few seconds later, Adrien entered the room looking guilty and hard pressed to make eye contact.

"You're late." The father informed with a cold tone that hid his frustration. "I told you one hour."

Adrien nodded. "I-I know, but I just got a little carried away, and Marinette was really having fun since we were all playing this ga-"

"Excuse me? Marinette? You asked to spend some time with that other friend of yours… Nino, I believe? What were you doing with Marinette!?"

Adrien flinched at giving himself away. "I uh…" He'd told his father he was going to hang with Nino even though they had planned to hang at Marinette's birthday party. "It was Marinette's birthday party and Nino was there, so-"

"So, nothing! I gave you permission to spend time with one friend, and you deliberately deceived me!" Marinette? Why did that name sound familiar? "Did this Marinette girl encourage you to lie to me or was it Nino?"

"No, father, I just wanted to go to her party, and I knew you wouldn't let me, plus she was really happy I came."

Gabriel scoffed. Now he remembered. Marinette was the girl Lila Rossi warned him about. The one who was a bad influence on Adrien. "So it was Marinette, was it? She's the one who has you deliberately disobeying me, and… what's that?" Gabriel pointed to the bag Adrien held.

"Uh, just some snacks she gave me when I left…" The teen admitted knowing what was coming next.

"Not only is she having you lie to me, and not go home when requested, but she's attempting to ruin your diet!? Your meals are planned very precisely, Adrien, and you know fashion week is only a month away!" The model furrowed his brow as he nodded. "If you understand then you'll have no complaint with never speaking to her again! I will call the school and make sure you are moved out of any classes with her, and if that can't be arranged, you will be removed from school! If you cannot stay away from her from now on despite this, I will even go so far as to put in a restraining order to see to it that she does not influence you again!"

Adrien could feel only shock at what his father just said. His eyes were wide, but shock quickly moved to disgust as he narrowed his eyes. "No, father! You're being ridiculous! Marinette is my friend, and I won't stay away from her just because you told me too!"

Gabriel walked around his desk and took the treats from his son. "You obviously don't understand exactly what she's doing-"

"No, **you** don't understand!" Adrien pushed his father away and the designer took a back step, minorly surprised at his son's physical retaliation. "Marinette is the sweetest, kindest, most creative, and giving person I've ever met! I refuse to listen to you talk about her that way! She always wants to include me whenever the class hangs out, and I usually can't because **you** won't let me! She makes sure I have as much chance to help with school activities as I can because I can barely stay since **you** gave me a million other things to do! For my birthday, she made me this jacket **you** said was very well done, while you always give me a damn pen and never even wish me a happy birthday! And just so **you** know, my diet leaves me with low blood sugar when it's hot out so she makes sure to give me something sweet when she notices how tired I am! She treats me like a real person, not some… employee!" He spat at the end of his rant. "I'm sorry she makes you look so bad in comparison, father!" He then let loose one more glare before stomping out of the office, and off to his room.

Gabriel was just a stonewall of slight surprise on the outside, but on the inside his brain had derailed at his son's actions. Adrien was at the age being nearly 17, but he had never been so openly defiant before, especially not to pushing and yelling. "Sir?" Nathalie peeked in looking a bit out of sorts. "Is everything alright?"

Gabriel composed himself and sighed. "No, not even close. You, no doubt, heard all that?" Nathalie nodded. "Of course… Why does he choose now of all times to stage his little rebellion? I already have half a dozen issues regarding his image, and now I have to worry about him being a surly teenager in public after this little bout of defiance." He then glared back at the article he'd been seething at before. "Then I'm back to the problem of how Adrien will never be a suitable heir to my brand!" He knocked the magazine off his desk in a rage. "All that over a girl, who…" He paused as he thought about it.

"Sir?" Nathalie wondered at his sudden silence.

"Hold on…" He trailed off deep in thought. "That girl who… made him a jacket. Wait… Marinette… Dupain-Cheng?"

Nathalie nodded. "Yes, sir."

He rubbed his chin as he recalled her. It had been a long while since he'd seen her, but he did remember her winning one of his contests about two years ago. Her work was excellent considering her age, and that jacket… It was no wonder he couldn't figure out where it had come from if she made it for him. "I just had a brilliant idea, Nathalie." He declared with a nearly sinister grin. "A solution that should solve all of these problems all at once!" He went back to his desk and sat down. "Go and get me everything you can on Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I want to be able to get through it before dinner."

Nathalie nodded with curiosity obvious on her face. "Of course, sir, but might I ask why?"

"I'll explain after I'm sure, just hurry with the files." He ordered looking a little too excited.

* * *

For the next few hours, Gabriel poured over everything Nathalie could find on the girl. She got above average marks in Lycee, though she did have a record for being tardy. She already sold clothes via an online shop, and had even designed for Jagged Stone on at least three separate occasions. It was something even Gabriel couldn't claim since the rocker had turned his offer down years before. Her family owned a rather famous bakery which would explain the tendency to give his son sweets. When it came to her character, the only claims against it were by Lila Rossi, who Gabriel kept around because of her ability to manipulate people, and Chloe Bourgeois, who had far too many character flaws to be judging anyone else.

For all that Gabriel could find on this Marinette, nothing would tell him she was a bad influence aside from his son's actions to defy him. His son had been especially defensive about how he treated her. Even when he'd rejected Nino as an appropriate friend for Adrien, he didn't act in such a way. That meant Marientte meant a lot to him. "This… This is perfect." He realized once it crossed his mind. His son must've had feelings for this girl and that meant his plans would be even easier to set in motion.

"Gabriel, I went ahead and brought in her family history as well as another character statement from Ms. Rossi." Nathalie walked in while shifting through files on her tablet.

"Hold the family history, and just toss out that statement from Ms. Rossi. I've seen enough that I'm sure of my next move."

"So, this solution of yours?" The secretary inquired secretly dying to know just what had Gabriel so animated.

"Yes, the solution. The solution to, not only Adrien's little rebellion from earlier, but these tabloid trash articles as well."

"Marinette?"

Gabriel nodded. "Exactly, I will have Adrien fall in love with Ms. Dupian-Cheng." Nathalie's eyes went wide. "He obviously cares for her if he was willing to go that far in her defense, and of course if he's dating someone then the tabloids will leave him alone. She's moderately attractive, and would make a decent model if she was a bit taller as well. Not to mention she's an aspiring designer, so I could have her become the heir to my brand once they've married." Nathalie was still shocked at how her boss had jumped to this plan. He'd never shown interest in Adrien's love life, or in allowing his son much control of his life at all. As she adjusted to the idea, Gabriel's last point struck her the hardest; the heir part. That's probably the biggest reason he's doing this. "You look bothered by my plan, Nathalie." He pointed out slightly irritated she could find it so strange.

"Oh, no, Gabriel, it's just… sudden. It makes perfect sense, however, the more I think on it." She quickly appeased. She didn't need him getting irritated all over again, and she had a feeling this was more good than bad for Adrien.

"Good, I'll go and speak with Adrien right now then." He headed off to his son's room without a moment's hesitation, and Nathalie snapped to in order to follow. "Adrien?" Gabriel called after knocking on his door. He could hear movement but no answer. "Adrien, open this door. I need to speak with you!" The movement stopped but still no answer. "Adrien, open this door, and listen to what I have to say this instant!" He used his most demanding voice. He wasn't about to start off by coddling the boy. He still needed to express his authority.

After a minute or so, Adrien finally opened the door looking surly and irritated. "Yes, father." He hissed while stepping aside to let him in grudgingly.

"Good, now about your behavior from earlier-"

"Father, if you're just going to keep insulting Marinette-"

"Don't interrupt me, Adrien." Gabriel shot back with an icy tone. "Listen when I speak to you, and remember who you're talking to." He saw his son flinch only slightly at that. "I will not tolerate you speaking to me with such disrespect!"

Adrien looked away. "Yes, father." He growled out lowly.

"What was that?"

"Yes, father." Adrien repeated with a more controlled tone while looking him in the eye.

"Good, and now that you understand that, I will admit that perhaps, I too, was a bit out of line." Adrien's brow shot up instantly at his father's admission. "About Ms. Dupain-Cheng that is, not your attitude." The man quickly clarified. "I have taken the last few hours to reevaluate her, and have come to determine she is not a bad influence. While I cannot say this for all of your friends, Ms. Dupain-Cheng at least is not someone that gives me cause to worry. As a matter of fact, she appears to be everything you told me she was." He then cleared his throat for this next part. "I retract everything I said before." That was the hardest thing to say so far for the designer. As much as it tore at his pride to admit he was wrong, this could prove more important. "As an apology, for both you and Ms. Dupain-Cheng, I will allow you to spend as much time as you'd like with her. Now this time cannot interfere with your studies or modeling business, and of course, you will need to notify me in advance, but I wouldn't be avers to having you miss a tutoring session or two if it were to spend time with her."

"F-father… are you okay?"

Gabriel took a calming breath. Adrien's disbelief wasn't helping. "Yes, Adrien, I'm fine. I'm an adult, and I can admit to making a mistake. Do you not want to spend more time with her?"

"Yes, of course, it's just… Sorry, that was rude of me." Adrien admitted with a genuinely apologetic and slight frazzled tone. Gabriel could tell his son was just trying to keep up with the information. It was rare that he approved of Adrien's friends, so that is within reason. "This is great, father."

"I know, and you just reminded me of another thing. That jacket, as you pointed out earlier, I already noted how well made it was. The design is very nice. Marinette made this by hand?"

Adrien nodded as he started to gush on the smaller details. "Yeah, she made the pockets zip, and the inner layer is light so I can even wear it on days it's not cold." He also wanted to say it reminded him of his Chat Noir suit a bit, but decided to leave that part out.

"You've certainly been wearing it often enough. She's obviously talented… I think I'll offer her an internship with my design house."

Adrien jumped to surprise yet again. "Huh? Really?"

Gabriel nodded. "Yes, she's talented, and I would be remiss to let that pass me by."

"You're… serious?" His son's skeptical tone was coming out again.

Gabriel certainly didn't want his son to get suspicious of his other motives. "She'll be a second year in Lycee come fall correct? A perfect time to pad her resume." He gestured to his wrist and turned to Nathalie.

"6:34, sir."

"Good, it's not too late. Let's go right now."

"Father?" His son called out as Gabriel turned to leave.

"Yes, Adrien… did you want to come? I don't want you to think I'm just trying appease your anger. I'm quite serious."

The teen was bordering between wary and excited at the moment. His father was acting very out of character though… maybe he'd gotten through to him? He knew Marinette was a wonderful person, and his father had no business saying otherwise. Maybe his father really did reflect on it? Anyone could change… right. "I do want to come." He expressed hoping there wasn't any reason to be worried. He didn't want his father to reconsider this just because he was suspicious of him, and this would be great for Marinette.

* * *

The short car ride was tense as Adrien went over in his mind exactly what was going on. He certainly hoped he wasn't dreaming. Considering how angry he was earlier when he stormed up to his room, maybe he was sleeping? It was always a good way to calm down aside from running around Paris as Chat Noir. When they arrived at the bakery, his father didn't even wait for Nathalie before getting out. Gabriel took a good look at the note on the door. "Store is closed today except for pickup orders after 1pm." He read aloud.

Adrien, who had gotten out last, pointed out why. "That's when the party started." Gabriel tested the door to find it open, and went in without a second thought.

A young woman at the counter greeted him. "Hello, we're closed for normal business. If you have an order for pick up, I can get it."

The designer shook his head. "No, we're not here for baked goods. Do you know if Marinette Dupain-Cheng is available?"

The girl looked put out by the question. "Well, sir, I'm not sure I can…"

"Lisa? Has someone come to pick up to Blalock order?" Sabine came out from the kitchen to address the potential customers at the counter. She didn't recognize the older man or the woman, but as soon as her eyes found Adrien, she beamed. "Adrien? I didn't expect to see you again so soon."

The model nodded with a wave. "Hey, Mrs. Cheng. To be honest, it's kind of a surprise to me too." He admitted while looking up to his father.

"Ah, Mrs. Cheng? You must be Marinette's mother, correct?" She did look familiar, but he may have only seen her in passing; probably at that show during the Style Queen incident.

"Yes, and you're… Adrien's father, Gabriel Agreste?" He nodded and she smiled. "It's wonderful to meet you in person, finally." She held out a hand to shake, and the designer reluctantly took it. He wasn't one to shake hands very much. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

"Yes, I'm actually here to speak with your daughter about something. Is she here?"

Sabine tapped her chin. "I believe she's upstairs with one of her friends. I'll just go and get her." The woman offered as she hurried to the back to enter the apartment.

Tom took his chance to come up front after hearing the conversation thus far. "Couldn't help overhearing. Tom Dupain, nice to finally meet you." The large man greeted with a warm smile. He wiped his flour covered hands off on his apron and reached out a hand. Gabriel couldn't help the obvious hesitance on his part to shaking hands. "Oh… I suppose that didn't really help?" Tom laughed at his own words. "That's fine, no insult taken." The designer looked over the large man. He could tell very quickly this man was soft hearted, but at the same time, he still wouldn't want to come to blows with him physically. He then briefly recalled akumatizing this man over his daughter some time ago, before hearing his target approach.

The teen girl stepped out from behind her large father looking out of breath and wide eyed. "Y-yes, Mr. Agreste. You wanted to talk to me?" She asked quickly noting just how important, the fact Gabriel was there in person meant, this was.

"Yes, good evening, Ms. Dupain-Cheng. I realize it is rather late, and on your birthday, no less, but after a rather… interesting conversation with my son earlier, I couldn't help taking note of your part in the production of his new favorite jacket." Gabriel pointed to the clothing Adrien was wearing while his son blushed in slight embarrassment. "He tells me you made this by hand, and designed it yourself?"

Marinette nodded, still looking nervous and wide eyed. "Y-yes, sir, for his birthday."

"I see, it is very well done."

"Th-thank you, Mr. Agreste. Having your praise on one of my works is amazing." She quickly thanked with a short bow of her head.

"Not just one, Ms. Dupian-Cheng. If my memory is correct you also won a contest of mine not too long ago."

"Yes, the hat…?" She nearly question still finding herself very overwhelmed by the sudden visit and inquiry.

"Yes, and that brings me to why I've come to see you now. I would like to offer you an internship at my design house. I imagine you plan on a designer track next year? Then perhaps a degree in design come university?" Marinette nodded while shocked at what he just offered. "You obviously have talent, and I'm always looking for that in my designers. Given just what I've seen already, you may even find yourself being offered a design position after graduating Lycee." Marinette was finding it hard to form a coherent thought let alone a sentence as her knees began to give out. Tom caught her easily with a happy grin. "So, what do you say, Ms. Dupain-Cheng? Design position or not, I can assure you an internship with me will be more than tempting to any university admissions officer." The younger designer nodded from her partly fallen position, but could only get out a slight squeak in response.

Sabine was so excited for her daughter as she looked up at the grey haired man. "Would you like to stay for dinner, Mr. Agreste? I made more than enough."

He politely held up his hand. "My apologies, but I'll need to get the paper work ready, so I can have Nathalie send it over first thing in the morning." He then turned to his son. "Though if Adrien would like to stay…" He trailed off as Arien's expression brightened.

"Can I, father?"

Gabriel nodded. "Yes, so long as it is still fine with Mrs. Cheng?"

Sabine nodded at the young man. "Of course, you're always welcome, Adrien."

"Then I will see you when you get home. Just call your bodyguard when you've finished and try not to stay too late. Also," He turned back to Marinette with a small smile. "Ms… Marinette?" He tested the more familiar addressing of the girl. "Happy Birthday." He then left with Nathalie in toe while Marinette was just trying to stand back up.

* * *

"There is no way this is just a change of heart." Alya remarked as Adrien actually joined the group for lunch. Marinette, and Nino were already waiting, and had almost given up hope he would be there.

"Hey, Adrien." Marinette greeted shyly while looking away after.

"Yo, dude! Thought you'd be in solitary after yesterday. You said your dad was steamed."

The model nodded and sat down with them. "Yeah, but he changed his mind."

Alya crossed her arms. "Your dad? He changed his mind? Seriously?" Adrien nodded. "Nino told me yesterday he was ready to pull you out of school, and then you and your dad show up out of nowhere in the bakery where he personally gives Marinette an internship in his company. Does that not sound weird or unbelievable to anyone else?" She asked aloud just remembering what happened. She was shocked when Marinette's mom came up to say Adrien and his father were there. The reporter was almost sure it was to demand Marinette stay away from his son considering what Nino had texted her.

"Yeah, but he told me that he took some time to reevaluate his opinion of Marinette." The designer blushed when Adrien smiled at her. "I can't believe it either, but at least now he knows how awesome you are, Marinette."

"Y-yeah…"

Alya rolled her eyes at her shy friend. "I still say something stinks about this."

Nino shrugged. "Or we could just be happy Adrien is here and not over think it. This probably means he's just being more open to us, finally. Hey, maybe you can ask about him letting you come to one of my shows on Saturday?"

Adrien's smile faded as he shook his head. "Uh… I did ask earlier after he told me I could come to lunch actually…"

Nino furrowed his brow. "But it's the early show, how could he have a problem?"

"I asked that too, and he just said I had no business there, and if I really wanted to hear the music I could just get a recording."

Nino sighed. "Not the same, dude…"

Alya took the excuse into consideration. "So, he had no problems with going to lunch with us, right?"

"No, he actually encouraged me to take my time, though I was to bring Marinette back with me." He turned to her. "He wants to talk to you about the internship since he has all the paperwork from this morning."

"Of course, I was expecting something like that… though not quite this soon." She admitted looking nervous as ever. Adrien was just enjoying the fact he was out with his friends two days in a row. He didn't have the heart to tell them his father only let him come because Marinette was here. It was just a first step though, hopefully his father would come around to his other friends as well.

* * *

As soon as Adrien returned with Marinette, Gabriel prepared his most welcoming smile. It wasn't something he used very often, and he wanted to make sure not to scare her away. The extensive portfolio she turned into Nathalie along with the paperwork was just more evidence of her talent. "Good afternoon, Ms. Marinette." Gabriel called from just outside his studio.

"Yes, good afternoon, Mr. Agreste." She returned as confidently as she could.

"As I'm sure Adrien has mentioned, I would like to take a bit of your time." He then turned to his son. "She is free to join you after I'm done."

Adrien nodded with a smile as he went towards the stairs. "Thank you, father. I'll see you in a bit, Marinette?" She nodded with a blush before following Gabriel into his studio.

"Before we begin, I want to thank you for looking after my son. It was brought to my attention recently that his diet causes him problems in hot weather." The older designer addressed as he sat behind his desk.

Marinette took the chair in front of it. "Oh, I was just trying to help. I understand how models need to diet for their jobs, and I would never want Adrien to pass out because of it."

The man nodded. "Indeed, I would not want my son to pass out either. I had a long talk with his dietitian last night, and changes are already being made to prevent this problem in the future." He picked up the bag of sweets he'd left on his desk last night. "And although it was a very kind gesture, I do hope you'll be a bit more mindful of giving him too many. You are free to voice any health concerns you notice to me directly from now on."

Marinette nodded with a sheepish expression. "Of course, sir. I never wanted to mess up his diet."

Gabriel smiled slightly. "Good, now in regards to the internship. As I was looking over your portfolio, I thought having you work with my son would be an excellent start."

The teen's eyes went wide. "Work with A-Adrien?"

"Yes, he has several shoots scheduled in the next few weeks leading up to fashion week. Our photographer mentioned recently that Adrien may benefit from having an assigned designer to work with him specifically on site. You'll be in charge of arranging the clothes he models, making sure none of them are damaged as well as making sure they fit Adrien as intended. As a classmate of his, you've no doubt noticed how much taller he has gotten recently? It's caused last minute alterations on more than one occasion as well as one accidental tear." As Gabriel explained her job he noticed something odd about Marinette's expression. He'd seen nervous interns before. They would be worried about meeting his expectations or that they'd make some silly mistake. He could see that in this girl, but something else too. "Of course, as with all of my designers, you are free to submit design ideas to me at anytime. Do keep in mind, however, that I do not like to waste time; submit only your best." He declared with one of his icy stern tones.

"I wouldn't dream of presenting anything less." Marinette agreed confidently.

"Good, his next shoot is on Thurday, so you need to come in tomorrow to speak with Stephen to get a better idea of what I expect from you. He's one of my lead designers, and has been one for longer than most. Feel free to field any questions with him. Nathalie will be able to give you his contact information before you leave."

"Yes, sir… um…"

Gabriel raised a brow. "Yes?"

"It's just… I can't help but be curious as to why you changed your mind all of a sudden. I understand you are very protective of Adrien, but you've never let him out so… Never mind." She suddenly declared with a flustered tone. "I'm sorry, I'm just grateful you changed your mind; I didn't mean to sound rude!"

Gabriel found her demeanor amusing. Despite the slight insinuation that he was overly controlling, she was speaking so candidly. It was rare for someone to speak to him that way. "Well, Ms. Marinette, just like you, I only want what is best for my son. I have just come to realize what is best for him, and his future is something that changes with time. I have also recognized you are of the same mind, and as you work with him, please continue to look out for him as you have been."

"Y-yes, of course!" Her reply was even more flustered than yesterday.

"If you don't have any more questions for me, then you are free to go." He dismissed and she nodded politely.

Gabriel couldn't stop grinning at her as she left, and Nathalie took note immediately. "Am I to assume your plan is going well?" She asked.

"Better than I previously thought, actually."

Nathalie raised a brow. "And that means what exactly?"

The designer chuckled as he turned to her. "Adrien obviously cares greatly for her, but now I know it's mutual. I suppose I could be wrong, but I believe Ms. Marinette already has strong feelings for him as well."

The curious secretary couldn't help but agree given what she has seen as well. Marinette was usually the one she saw when his classmates were organizing something, and she was usually the one who found a way to include Adrien despite his schedule. "Given this, do you think we should just let things go from here?"

Gabriel scoffed as he held his arms behind his back. "Not at all. From now on Adrien needs as many reasons to spend as much time with her as possible, preferably alone. He should still be allowed on group outings so long as Marinette is in attendance, however. I don't want him to figure out what I'm trying to do until it's too late."

"You mean until after he falls in love with her?"

The designer chuckled again. "No, that's already happened. He takes after his mother in that way, so I can tell. What I'm talking about is him becoming fully aware of just how much he cares for her. Once that happens, we can step back and watch everything fall into place."


	2. Artificial Scandal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila causes problems while Marinette tries her best. Meanwhile Adrien makes a discovery from Plagg's terrible romance advice.=^-^=

Over the next few weeks Nathalie kept a sharp eye on Adrien. His father needed him to focus on Marinette without being told to, and so she tried to keep unnecessary others away. This, more often than not, meant Lila Rossi. Since she was Gabriel's 'muse' she was always on set for photo shoots, and the summer meant no school to get in the way. "Marinette, please have Adrien go back to the vest outfit. Vincent just looked through his photos and feels he needs something better for that one." Stephen ordered as he checked off clothing on his tablet.

"Yes, Stephen." She was more than happy to oblige and snatched up the outfit immediately.

Nathalie quickly took note of one, not so happy, teenager as she glared at the intern. Lila had only made a move once so far and the shoot would end soon. She may have been catching on. She heard her phone ring, and quickly answered while keeping her eyes on Lila. "Nathalie?"

"Yes, Sir. Everything is fine so far." She informed knowing he always wanted a status update.

"Not exactly, Nathalie. I just forwarded a new story that just broke to the tablet."

She pulled it up and indeed a new message with an attachment appeared. "Sir, you've never cared what this periodical said before." Though her boss could get rather touchy about the littlest things.

"That's not really the point, Nathalie. I'm more concerned on when they got the photo."

The assistant looked at the picture that sat with the article. It wasn't all that impressive, but it did show Lila together with Adrien, though his face could barely be seen. Her face was of adoration, which would insinuate that his was as well. "I see. What actions would you have me take? I could easily debase this story."

"No, I have a better idea. Before the shoot ends, have Vincent take a nice picture of Adrien and Marinette. I already contacted Stephen about having him change outfits to match what she would be wearing more."

"Yes, sir. Anything else?"

"Contact the Dupain-Chengs for permission to use it after the shoot." Ah, now she had a feeling about what he was doing. Counter a weak story with a stronger one.

* * *

The next few days were a bit of a wreck for Adrien as the repercussions of that tabloid garbage followed him around. His father hadn't let him go out much at all, and when it was with Marinette, it had to be at one of their houses. It made him really hate newspapers. Today, however, he'd gotten permission to go out with his friends. The only rules he had to follow were staying with his bodyguard at all times, and to not mention anything about a relationship with Lila for any reason. He wasn't even allowed to talk to Marinette about it, though she hadn't asked about it. It was a little disappointing really. Anyway, they were all checking out a craft fair around the park. There were actually a few going on around the city, but this one was convenient for most of the group, plus they could get lunch at Marinette's since it was close. "So, what should we look at first?" He asked his musical friend.

"I don't know, dude. I'm not a craft guy. Alya asked me to come." He answered with a shrug.

"We're going to start on one end, and finish at the other of course." Alya cut in as she pulled Marinette along. "Whoa! Not so fast, Alya!"

The boys watched her get nearly dragged across the street in slight amusement. "So, dude, I saw that article about you and Lila."

Adrien let out a sigh. "I cannot say anything about it, Nino." Understandable really. Alya had mentioned Lila said something similar. That's one reason why Nino was letting the girls get so far ahead. Alya had told him to hang with Adrien while she grilled Marinette. He had no problem with the slightly underhanded tactic either, not since it was so hard to spend one on one time with his bud.

Alya and Marinette were already in the throng of stalls before the reporter made her first probing question. "So, Marinette, you and Adrien have been getting pretty close."

"Seriously, Alya? I work with him!" Of course the blush made it obvious Marinette knew what she meant.

"Sure, and spending a lot of time together."

"Adrien has spent more time out with a lot of us, Als." A nice change if she was being honest.

Alya had already noticed that as well, though she also noticed he was with Marinette more than anyone else. That's what made that article about Lila and Adrien so weird. When she asked Lila about it she was told not to say anything, but the way she acted insinuated it was true. She knew Gabriel Agreste wasn't the type to just let an article spout lies, and he hadn't done anything about it yet. That was another contributing factor to its validity, but something was still odd. "Okay, okay, well then have you seen that article? I know I sent you a link."

Marinette flinched at the mention. "Yeah, I did…"

"So?" Alya inquired for more of an answer.

"So, what? It's just a gossip story."

That was true. Alya knew that particular paper was less than authoritative source wise. They've had a couple of good stories, but most are just gossip like Marinette said. "Do you think it's true? Has Adrien said anything?"

She shook her head. "No, and I'm not going to ask him. He's a famous model, so stories like that probably stress him out. It makes it hard for him to go out without fans or reporters bothering him."

Though Alya felt slightly guilty about that part, she wasn't going to let Marinette go just yet. "Okay, story aside! Back to the important stuff." She began with a grin that made Marinette take a step away. "You don't stutter around him anymore."

The designer quickly blushed harder. "Well I… talk to him more often so; it would be bad if I did." Lots of practice did wonders after all.

"So one more step to confessing then?"

"Hey, look at these quilts, Alya! Aren't they beautiful?" Marinette redirected with all the grace of a penguin in six inch pumps.

"Yes they are." She played along with an eye roll. The journalist in her wanted to keep going, but her friend seemed questioned out. She'd need to take a less aggressive position. It was something she learned from one of her Lycee media classes. Sometimes it was necessary to back off and give slack before pulling the target back for questions.

"Alya!" She turned to spy Rose with a few of the other girls from classes. Most of the students from Du Pont fortunately went to the same Lycee and they still spent plenty of time together.

"Hey! Marinette…" Her designer friend was digging through a stack of quilts. "I guess she was serious?..." Alya shrugged and jogged over to Rose. "What's up? Didn't know anyone else was coming." She looked through them and noted two absentees. "I guess Alix and Lila are the only ones missing out?"

Julika nodded though she looked more somber than normal. "You know Alix isn't into this sort of thing." Rose pointed out, before looking over Alya's shoulder. "You're here with Marinette?" Alya nodded glancing back to see she hadn't been missed yet. "So then you haven't heard yet?"

"Heard what?" Her journalism instincts catching the tone.

Rose looked between the other girls. "You remember that story about Lila and Adrien right? Well, when we invited Lila to come here with us, she told us she was really upset and didn't want to go out. Apparently, Marinette has been using her new internship to make sure Lila can't even talk to Adrien."

"What!?" She knew Marinette was jealous, but she wouldn't abuse her position! That didn't sound like Marinette… though Marinette did do crazy things when it came to Adrien. At least she didn't do anything when he was dating Kagami, but... they broke up awhile ago so... She turned to glare at her best friend, and was pretty close to marching over there to scold her on it, but stopped. She was holding up a black and green quilt, and showing it off to Adrien who was laughing about something she said. The two of them looked so happy. She let out a sigh. Even if she was angry at Marinette, she couldn't ruin Adrien's time too. She would wait. "Alright, but I'll wait until Adrien leaves to talk to her about it. I don't want to ruin this for him."

Rose quickly agreed with both fists pumping. "Good idea, Alya." Rose would never intentionally hurt someone if she could help it.

"Okay, I'll let you know how it goes later. For now, we'll pretend like nothing is wrong." Alya did just that as she strolled back over to join them. Nino was outside the stall sighing at the scene. "What's wrong, Nino?"

Her boyfriend was really excited to hang with Adrien this morning. "Just look at him."

"Yeah, and?"

"Can I please just tell him Marinette has had a crush on him for years? Please? He's killing me."

Alya quickly shook her head. "Of course not!" Marinette was still her best friend regardless of how she was with Lila.

"But he's killing me! We were separated for like, 15 minutes and he wouldn't stop talking about her!" Nino whined.

Alya quickly shushed him when he got a little too loud. "About Marinette?"

"Yeah, I tried at least five different subject changes and boom, Marinette comes out of nowhere. She's good at this, she likes to do that, Marinette told me this funny story about whatever!" He whisper yelled. "Dude's got it real bad."

Alya raised a brow at him before turning to the pair. Adrien was doing some odd pose with the quilt around his shoulders while Marinette giggled and rolled her eyes. This would normally make her rush over and squeal happily with her friend, but now it confused her. While this was her second favorite ship she was hoping to see sail, it also made her wonder about that story with Lila. Did Adrien know Marinette was keeping them apart? It didn't even look like he cared much at all really. Now that she thought about it, he'd never asked after Lila outside school. He was always amicable to her, and helpful, but no more than he was to most. That could have been a cover though, since a relationship like that could cause problems as was the current deal with the tabloid story. Then again, why wouldn't they just admit to it? For Lila's sake? But she's the daughter of a diplomat; she would have protection.

"Babe?" Nino called as he waved a hand in her face. "You still here?"

"Huh? What, Nino?"

He shook his head. "I asked what you would do about his pining, and you zoned out on me."

Alya snapped her eyes to her boyfriend. "Oh, I already deal with that with Marinette, so leave them alone."

"Well, if you weren't thinking about an answer, what were you thinking about?" It was rather deep for her to forget he was there.

"Rose just told me something, and it got me thinking."

"Okay… and?" He insisted for an elaboration.

Alya looked back over to their friends to see them still very much distracted. "She said Lila was upset at Marinette for using her internship to keep Lila and Adrien apart."

Nino crossed his arms. "That doesn't sound like Marinette. Besides, I may not know when it got so bad, but Adrien obviously has a thing for Marinette."

"That's what had me thinking, Nino. Something here doesn't track." Nino nodded in agreement, but he wasn't even remotely sure what it was. The only thing he was sure of, was that hanging with Adrien may drive him crazy if this continues. Alya pulled out her phone to look for something to help her put the facts together. There was bound to some other information out there by now, but she also knew she had to be careful of the sources as well. She could use a poor source as an idea board, but only to find a better source.

"Who's that?" Nino pointed out as he tapped her shoulder. She found him eyeing one of the vendors as he pulled a camera from out of a gaudy birdhouse. Adrien's bodyguard, who had been loitering outside the stall nearby quickly noticed the teens' reactions and turned to the disguised reporter. He narrowed his gaze and pushed himself through the tables to get to his charge. The ensuing mess happened so fast, it was hard to tell exactly what happened first, or even how it came to that, but by the end it was obvious the day was going to get cut short.

Adrien and Marinette were partly buried under quilts and the large man was digging them out. The paparazzi, which took advantage of being ignored, rushed over to take shots of his targets. Adrien pushed aside a large quilt once his guard removed most of them, and revealed he was laying over Marinette. She was on her side partly hugging the black and green quilt she'd been so interested in. Several flashes broke any relief Marinette or Adrien showed at each other's safety, but the body guard quickly stepped in to scare the vulture off with a growl. "Marinette!" Both Alya, and Nino called out in surprise.

"Sorry about that, Marinette." Adrien sighed as he looked back to his friend.

"I-it's fine…" She blushed brightly as she sat up, and moved he himself out of her way.

"You guys okay?" Nino came around to help get the quilts out of the way.

"Yeah, I am. What about you?" Adrien asked as he let out a hand to help Marinette stand.

"G-good. I'm good." She then moved her eyes back to the wrinkled quilt in her hands and started folding it back up. "Hopefully none of these got ruined." She sounded flustered as she said that.

"Yeah, and that guy could've helped." Alya remarked while none too please her aspired profession made scum like him. She moved to help Marinette straighten up the quilts. It took a few minutes, and the vendor, who was away at another table, wasn't too mad when he came back to find the scene.

"I'll pay for any that may have gotten ruined because of that." Adrien declared as he apologized to the man.

"No harm done really." He insisted back as he looked over his stock. "But if you feel bad, just buy one. I don't see much point in having one person buy several if they don't need them." Marinette could tell by his tone that this man must have had some hand in making them. While some artists only look for money, those who enjoy making things like quilts wanted their work to have a purpose.

"Then this one?" Adrien reached for the black and green quilt Marinette had set aside. He ignored all of the young designer's attempts to stop him and smirked at her when he handed it back. "Think of it as an apology, Marinette. This whole mess was only because that reporter was looking for me, after all."

"Yeah, Marinette, besides he wouldn't need this living in a mansion." Nino encouraged as he placed a hand on Adrien's shoulder.

"But it was expensive." Marinette argued back weakly.

"That was expensive?" The model questioned. The sincere confusion of his face brought Alya and Nino to laughter while Marinette just blushed harder.

"I have to get a picture of this!" Alya declared as she lifted her phone to the clueless model's face. She was just about to swipe over to the camera app before noting one of the results from her earlier search. She hadn't had a chance to look since that mess happened right after she'd started. "…Huh?"

"You missed it, Alya!" Nino scolded in disappointment when her pause gave Adrien time to cover his face. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know. Something you two want to share with us?" Alya's surprise turned to a smirk as she turned her phone.

It showed a nice photo of Adrien taking a napkin to a very surprised Marinette's face. "What!?" "Th-that picture!?"

"Uh-huh, so? Anything you need to tell me?" Alya reiterated to the couple who now seemed to be in competition for who could turn the reddest.

"But it wasn't, I mean… the photo shoot…" Marinette trailed off and hid behind her quilt.

"Dude, come on." Nino teased pointing at the picture.

"Come on what? She just had ranch on her face, and her hands were full so I was just helping!" Adrien instantly defended with a flustered tone. He'd never been so thankful to be interrupted before as he pulled out his phone the second it vibrated. "Y-yes, father?" He turned around and both Alya and Nino rolled their eyes at his redirect.

Alya moved over to Marinette as she turned her phone back around to read the story. "So, girl, just how close do you define 'working together' in this case?" She gave her a playful jab of her elbow when she heard a muffled response.

* * *

Gabriel grinned as he looked over the breaking story on his tablet. Vincent really had done a good job with the picture. He'd already seen it before the photographer 'sold it' to a reporter, but still, the quality for his purpose was undeniable. "The car has just pulled up, sir." Nathalie informed after a warning knock at his door.

"Good, send him in as soon as he comes in for our talk." He had instructed Adrien's bodyguard to contact him as soon as he spotted a reporter so he could call Adrien home. Normally he just let the large man deal with keeping Adrien safe when it was just some paparazzi photos, but this case was different. It had to feel like a coincidence for Adrien to be called home. That way, Gabriel could use two instances on him instead of one.

As soon as he heard the knock on his door he composed himself. "Father? Nathalie said you wanted to speak with me now?"

"Yes, come in, Adrien." He placed the tablet on his desk and stood up as Adrien entered.

"Um… is this about that picture of Marinette and-" Gabriel showed him the image on the tablet effectively cutting off his question. "Oh…"

"Did I not warn you about being more aware of yourself after that story with Lila? The tabloids will jump on anything so soon after a story like that." He warned, but mostly for effect, and not anger.

"I didn't realize… I don't even know how they got that picture." He knew Vincent was having fun after the photo shoot, and already know it was taken, but Vincent could be fired over letting it get out.

"Vincent believes one of his assistants happened upon the picture while he was going through the ones from the shoot."

"You're not going to fire him are you!?" Adrien asked in worry. Vincent had been his photographer for years, and he knew how Adrien worked.

"I have yet to decide that. This happening right on top of that story with Lila isn't helping his case, however. I was also informed by your bodyguard that another photographer was able to get away with a few shots of you and Ms. Marinette." He gestured to the image on the tablet. "That will only make this picture even more incriminating. You understand that, correct?"

Adrien furrowed his brow and nodded. "Yes, but… Please don't fire Vincent over it."

Gabriel gave him a stern expression. "And what would you have me do? Allow it to happen again?" The teen could tell it was rhetorical so he didn't answer, but couldn't help deflating at his father's words. "But, this does give me a reason to bring up another point. That wasn't the only unscheduled photo at the shoot." Gabriel scrolled through his tablet a bit before displaying several playful photos of Adrien and Marinette from the same day of the shoot. "Perhaps Vincent's only saving grace at the moment would be in giving me these before the story broke. He noticed your outfits were complimentary and proposed I include it with today's magazine spread."

Adrien couldn't tell if he should be relieved as he looked over the playful modeling he'd done with Marinette. Vincent had said it was just a joke, and even Stephen encouraged her to play along saying she had worked hard that day. "Wait… today's? Did you!?" He suddenly asked once he realized which magazine was releasing today.

"Is that a problem?" Gabriel countered with a scolding tone that showed he didn't want to be questioned.

"But you can't! Marinette will-" The young model was in a state of panic just thinking about how the girl will react. Everyone in Paris will know her face in less than an hour once that magazine is released!

"Calm yourself, Adrien." He interrupted with a slightly harsh tone. "I'm quite sure Ms. Marinette is fine. Mrs. Cheng was told when the magazine would be released when Nathalie requested permission for the photo."

His son looked back at him with a mixture of hurt and irritation. "You don't understand, father! With that story and now the magazine, she won't be able to go outside!" Oh Gabriel understood alright. He'd actually planned it that way. "Marinette doesn't have a body guard or a security wall around her house!" Adrien pointed at him with an accusing finger. "Why would you do that!?"

The older man batted the finger away and gave his son one his coldest glares. "Remember who you're talking to, Adrien!" Though he fully expected a reaction like this. "I was not the one who authored this scandal!" Even if he knew what would happen ahead of time.

Adrien flinched back at his scolding tone. Under normal circumstances, an aspiring designer would jump at the chance to even be mentioned in such a popular magazine. "I'm sorry, father…" He responded looking guilty and worried.

"You need to remain composed in these times, Adrien." His father told him with a slight sigh. "I understand you're upset on her behalf, so I will dismiss your attitude this time. I am also still going through things with Vincent about the leak. Nathalie has already warned the Dupain-Chengs of this as well. You will remain at home until we can clear this mess." Adrien didn't argue anymore. He was more worried about Marinette than he was over Vincent's career, and he wanted to check in with her. As soon as Adrien left the office, Nathalie entered and closed the door.

"My apologies, Gabriel, but don't you think this is pushing a bit much?"

"No." Gabriel quickly countered. "And if things go well, this will be the last push he'll need." The designer couldn't stop the smile on his face despite being questioned.

* * *

Adrien sat on his bed eyeing his phone anxiously. He'd texted Marinette less than a minute ago, but it felt like an hour. "Cool it, kid. You're looking at the phone like it just murdered your best friend."

The model didn't look up when he answered. "I'm worried, Plagg. Lay off."

"I know you're worried, but she's probably fine. Your old man did say he gave her parents the heads up right?"

"I know, but still."

"Still what? It's not like you can fix it."

"I can apologize." Adrien countered.

"Yeah, but for what? You didn't do anything." Plagg argued with irritation at his holder.

"I got her involved." The kwami scoffed at that. "I did!"

"Stop being an idiot."

Adrien turned around at the remark. "Lay off, Plagg."

"Look, kid, you know I hate dealing with this stuff, but I just can't let it go this time. Unless you can somehow fix everything, don't call her. You're only going to get her worked up too."

Adrien didn't answer. Instead he looked to his phone at the sound of a new message. "She said she's fine. Her parents just showed her the magazine. She's… excited." His voice sounded anything but.

"Okay, so what's wrong? Be excited for her."

"I can't! She doesn't realize what's going to happen." The model countered. "She won't be able to go anywhere without being mobbed."

Plagg rolled his eyes. "Uh, correct me if I'm wrong, but she wants to be a famous fashion designer right?"

"Yeah…"

"Isn't getting mobbed part of being famous? I think she knows what she's getting into."

"No she doesn't!" Adrien lashed back at the kwami in rage. "She doesn't! I know she doesn't! Father's been dealing with problems like this for longer than I've been alive, Plagg! Whenever the press comes out with some big story, denying is never the right way to go! She'll have to stay in her house for however long it takes for them to get bored, and if she does leave, they'll just harass her about her relationship with me! I won't be able to see her at all or it'll just start all over again!"

Plagg could see the small tears threatening to fall from his chosen's eyes. It made him feel guilty and he hated that. With a sigh he floated down to pat him on the head comfortingly. "It's gonna be okay, kid. I know how hard it is to be away from the one you love. I didn't mean to make it worse."

"W-what are you talking about, Plagg?" The blond asked looking more flustered than upset.

"You and pigtails. You're terrified you won't be able to see her anymore."

"But Marinette is just-"

"A girl you're nearly in tears over, kid. If there's one thing I can give those gossip junkies, its the fact they didn't make up the story this time; not like that one about the Lila girl." Plagg shuttered just remembering that article. If there was anything his long life told him, it was that girls like that were no good for anyone.

"I-I love… her?"

Another thing that Plagg's long life taught him, his kittens could be really dense. "Try not to make it sound like a question."

"But I…" Adrien raked his fingers through his hair. "I love Ladybug." He tried to correct.

"Haven't heard that name in awhile. You sure about that?" Plagg mused as he watched his chosen have a life altering realization. "Tikki is gonna be so proud of me." He muttered to himself as he turned and rubbed his paws together. A tense few minutes of silence fell, that had Plagg worrying he'd jumped the gun. He turned to the teen who looked like he froze mid-freak out. "Kid?"

"I love her…" He muttered in response.

"You okay?"

"I love her… Plagg… I love her!" He suddenly grabbed the destruction god right out of the air and yelled it with a crazed expression.

"O-Okay, kid… Maybe we can talk about this… No need to do anything rash." He did not need to deal with a psychotic break right now.

"But I love her, Plagg!" He let him go and started laughing hysterically which only made Plagg worry more.

"Crap… Tikki's right. I should not be helping with romance. Now if he goes off the rails, she's gonna to lord it over me just like 500 years ago." He floated further away as he watched the blond calm his laughter. "Uh… you okay, kid?... Kid?"

"Yeah." Adrien finally responded with his face in his comforter. "I am."

"You sure?" Plagg asked still feeling like the teen would snap any second.

"I'm sure, Plagg."

The kwami raised a brow. He didn't look like he was going to suddenly going to take up a sword and rampage in the name of love. That was a good sign… Maybe. "So… Um… You love her?"

"Yeah… I love her. I love Marinette." Adrien responded though he was slightly muffled from the fabric. He pushed his face up. "I think I have for awhile." The model admitted with a blush.

Plagg let out a breath of relief when he saw just how calm he was. No crazy psycho eyes were always a good thing. "So? You gonna do anything about it? Chat Noir would be boldly confessing his love by now." Plagg stated with a more relaxed tone.

"He would, wouldn't he? What about Adrien Agreste?" He asked with slight laugh in his tone.

"I imagine Adrien would kill for the chance to be so bold, right?"

Adrien couldn't help agreeing with the little cheese monster. He couldn't confess to Ladybug as Adrien. She would just say the same thing she always said to Chat Noir. It was too dangerous, our identities were important, and we couldn't share intimate details or risk each other's safety. Marinette was a different story though. Marinette knew him and his complicated life. Over the last few weeks he'd spent enough time with her. He didn't even realize it until now, but now that he was really thinking about it, he'd been letting his Chat out. Even earlier that day she laughed as he postured and made a cat pun with that quilt. "You're right… he would." Adrien finally answered. He pulled up his phone again, but stopped. "No… Calling wouldn't be right… I need to do it in person."

"Confess?" Plagg asked in minor surprise.

"Yeah." The model confirmed with a light blush.

"But… You can't leave right now. You're dad told you to stay put, and you already said that leaving will only make things worse. You'll only confirm those tabloid jerks are right."

Adrien put his phone in his pocket and grabbed his wallet from his nightstand. "Why deny it, Plagg? I want them to be right." He straightened his hair in his closet vanity and headed over to the door.

"Then at least go as Chat Noir so you can get there." Plagg argued while gesturing to the window.

"No, Plagg. I'm going to get there as Adrien. I don't care what my father says or who tries to stop me. The only person I'll accept no from is Marinette." He admitted with a slightly hurt look. "And if that's the case…" The idea made him hesitate. Years of rejection as Chat Noir had been painful. He wasn't sure how he would take it as Adrien, but he wouldn't know until he tried. Rejection aside, he never regretted telling her how he felt. "If that's the case, then at least I'll know."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay Adrien! Go for it! But what will Gabriel say? (Can you picture it?) Also, yes, Lila was the one to get that other story leaked.  
> =^-^=


	3. A Baker's Dozen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is my favorite pun so far. Also included: Flirting rules, and Gabriel's future plans.=^-^=

It went without saying that he wouldn't be able to just walk out his front door. Adrien knew he'd hit some resistance. It was unfortunate that the resistance was as well trained as Nathalie who was able to continuously block him despite his valiant attempts to dodge past her. "I'm going, Nathalie!" He declared again when his body guard took up a position by the door to assist the woman. "I'll get there today no matter what." Though he really wanted to get to Marinette before the magazine hit the shelves.

"What's going on out here?" Gabriel demanded in annoyance as he stepped out of his office. "Adrien? What are you doing?"

"I'm going out, father."

"You will do no such thing. I already explained to you why you couldn't go out until this story blows over." The designer corrected with a sharp tone as he started down the stairs. "You will go back to your room-"

"No! I'm going!" Adrien turned to his father with more confidence than ever. "That story doesn't matter, because I'm not going to deny it!"

"What are you going on about?" Gabriel asked while giving his best uncaring expression.

"It doesn't matter if the tabloids try to make up a story about Marinette and me dating because I want it to be true. I love Marinette, and I'm going over there to tell her whether you let me or not!"

Gabriel remained stoic at the declaration. "Love her? You're 16, Adrien, what do you know about love? You thought you were in love with Ms. Tsurugi before, as I recall."

The model's expression faltered at the question. "I… You're right, I don't know a lot, and this is different than how I felt with Kagami! If I stay here, I'll never know."

His father scoffed. "So is this how you plan to deal with that story? Confess your love and hope she accepts it? Tell me, Adrien, what if she doesn't? What will you do then? Anything you do will feed the story. Are you prepared to deal with that?"

"Are you going to let me go or not, father!? I'm not waiting anymore." A tense silence held the both of them.

Gabriel couldn't say he really liked that response, especially not his disrespectful attitude. However, sacrifices must be made for what he wants. He could scold Adrien later. Adrien watched in slight surprise as his father gave a silent nodded and gestured for Nathalie and his body guard to move. "If you're truly serious, don't disgrace the Agreste name by showing up empty handed."

Adrien couldn't tell if his father was angry or just tired of arguing. He certainly didn't seem happy, but he wasn't about to question it. "Thank you, father." He expressed before dashing out the door.

"Follow him discreetly." The designer order the body guard after Adrien was gone. He then turned to head back to his office with Nathalie on his heels.

"Do you have any plans on the chance she rejects him?" She inquired still slightly shocked everything was going so well.

"No, I can't do anything else at this point. I certainly cannot force Marinette to accept his feelings." Though he did feel certain if an akuma did come out of this, he wouldn't be turning Adrien.

"Will you terminate her internship?"

He paused a moment before shaking his head. "No, she's talented. I may as well keep her on, and I know she has feelings for Adrien. Even if she rejects him now, the possibility still exists." Though he had every confidence that he had nothing to worry about.

* * *

Adrien strode down the sidewalk with a bounce in his step, and a bouquet of pink roses. He could tell by the time he'd bought the flowers that someone was tailing him. He couldn't tell who, but it didn't matter so long as they kept their distance. He was so caught up in his plans, he'd forgotten it was still pretty early until he spotted the crowded park where the crafting fair was still going strong. "Shit…" He cursed under his breath right next to the bakery door. What was he going to do if she wasn't home? No… Her parents would have kept her in because of the magazine right? Of course that was still a few hours off.

"Adrien?" He heard his name along with the chiming of a bell. Mrs. Cheng beckoned him over with a slight knowing grin. "What are you doing here? Marinette told us you went home after having a run in with the paparazzi."

He nodded. "I did… but I… Is Marinette home?"

Mrs. Cheng nodded. "Yes, would you like me to call her down? Oh, come in! No need to stand out here." She suddenly realized as she held the door open.

"Thank you, Mrs. Cheng, and you don't have to. I'll just go to her." He thanked with a blush.

Tom watched him with a knowing expression as he walked past the counter. He traded a wink with his wife. They had been given a heads up only a few minutes before and so were able to make sure Marinette and Adrien didn't get interrupted. That being said, they were still going to spy. Sabine put up the temporarily closed sign and locked the door before the couple snuck off to secretly record the momentous occasion. Adrien hurried up the stairs while going over what he would say in his head. It wasn't complicated, but he didn't want to mix up his words and give her the wrong idea. "Adrien?" He hadn't even reached for the door before Marinette opened it.

"M-marinette!?" It was a miracle he didn't jump or miss a step on the small portion of the stairs outside the door.

"Yes… What are you doing here, Adrien?" She blushed when she caught sight of the roses but didn't say anything about them.

Adrien noticed her glance and held them up for her. "I'm here to see you… um, these… I brought them for you."

"F-for me?" She took them carefully so she wouldn't drop them from nerves. "A dozen pink roses?"

"Uh, actually, 13 pink roses." Adrien corrected. "I brought you 13 pink roses, but there's something else. It's something I've felt for awhile, but I just didn't understand until now." He blushed as he reached a hand to the back of his neck. "I love you, Marinette, and tabloid story or not, I'd like it if you would be my girlfriend." There, bold like Chat Noir, but not so flirty; perfect.

Marinette looked over the flowers as her cheeks grew darker than them all. "I… I don't…" The model was worried for a moment as she struggled with her words and let out a sigh. "No…" She finally muttered as she looked at her shoes.

"N-no!?" Adrien asked in surprise.

"What!? No, I mean not like that! I mean…urgh!" She groaned at her own terrible communication skills. She then dismissed words all together as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed him.

Adrien's brain was stuck between disappointment and shock. What she said and did was opposite! "Marinette?" He questioned once she pulled away to breathe.

"I'm sorry… I wasn't turning you down. I was telling myself no, because my words… I just have the worst time keeping my words straight around you. I was trying not to mess up." She admitted while pulling her arms away.

Adrien wrapped his arms around her waist to stop her and pulled her back. "It's okay, I think I get it." She did have a tendency to mix up her words after all. "But just so we're clear, you are agreeing to be my girlfriend, right? Feel free to answer with another kiss." He joked as she blushed at him and rolled her eyes.

"Yes, but before another kiss, I do have a quick question."

Adrien raised a brow and loosened his grip so she could ask while looking at him properly. "Sure."

"Why 13?" She wondered while holding up the roses curiously.

"Oh… uh well, the florist told me flowers have a bunch of meanings and it changes based on type, color and number. It was all really confusing to be honest so I chose pink because I know it's your favorite color." He chuckled just thinking back on it. "And I bought 13 because it's a baker's dozen."

Marinette shook her head as she tried not to laugh. "Silly, kitty." Adrien froze at the familiar nickname, but couldn't say anything before they were interrupted.

"You have my blessing, son!" Both of them looked down the stairs to see Tom waving and Sabine smack his shoulder with a phone in hand, most likely recording the whole scene.

"Mom! Dad!" The budding designer called out in a mortified tone as she pulled Adrien into the apartment and closed the door. She made sure to drag him all the way up to her room so that they wouldn't get disturbed and pushed the chaise onto the door for good measure. She then slumped onto the cushions with a groan. "I can't believe it! If they recorded that, everyone in my family will see it before the end of the week."

"If I knew it was going to be recorded I would have tried something a little more romantic." Adrien teased ever so slightly as Marinette turned to him.

"Don't encourage them! If you let them, they'd record everything!"

"But I'm a professional, milady." He joked back with a smirk he was hoping she'd notice.

"A professional dork. I swear you and my dad have the most ridiculous obsession with puns!" She almost screamed as she turned over and slumped on the chaise.

Adrien let out a sigh and sat beside her. He couldn't stop the smile from crossing his lips as he looked up and took her hand in his. "I can't believe this…"

"What? That someone could be as bad about puns as you?"

"No, milady, not that." He lowered his head and turned to her. "I can't believe… it's you." He lifted her hand and kissed the back like he'd done all those times as his alter ego.

Marinette flinched at his remark and blushed. "I guess I gave myself away already?" She asked sheepishly while not pulling her hand away.

"Yup, so when did you figure me out?" He asked back quit curiously.

"Um… Maybe a week ago?"

"A week!?" He repeated in surprise. "That long!?"

Marinette nodded sheepishly. "Y-yeah, kinda. That's when I first noticed how similar you were to Chat Noir. I guess it was because I was always so nervous before, but the way you threw out puns was a big clue. It probably also helped that we've been seeing so much of each other. Hawkmoth hasn't been very active, but hanging with you reminded me of Chat; it was easy to forget it had been a few weeks since I technically saw him. Honestly, I was going to ask earlier, but that story with Lila…" She trailed off looking sad.

"You know that's just made up garbage, right?"

Marinette nodded. "Yes, but I didn't want to stress you out about it by asking. It's all so complicated…"

Adrien squeezed her hand. "Actually, I think it's pretty simple, and if I'd just thought about it instead of blindly chasing you I probably would have figured it out a long time ago."

"I doubt that." The designer countered with an eye roll. "Though I don't really have room to talk. I've been crushing on you since coll-" She quickly covered her mouth.

The blond furrowed his brow at her near admission. "Hold on… College? But that would mean…" He paused as he put his memories together. "So the guy you've liked this whole time was me!?"

Marinette twiddled her fingers with a sheepish expression. "Um… Yeah?"

Adrien sat back and started to trace the concept in the air. "Okay so I'm Chat Noir, who liked Ladybug, who was actually Marinette who liked me, but I'm…"

"I thought you said it was simple." She interrupted when he started all over again.

"Nothing's simple with you idiots." Plagg argued as he peeked out from Adrien's shirt.

"Plagg! Don't ruin the moment!" Tikki scolded from up on Marinette's bed.

"No, these morons need to know how annoying they've been!" He busted out and scowled at the couple. "Especially you! The kid didn't know, but you've liked him all this time!? And did nothing!?"

Tikki blocked him with a glare of her own. "And how often do you do nothing, Plagg?"

Plagg scoffed. "Actually, sugar cube, you're gonna be proud of me this time. I'm the one who got blonde over there to figure out he liked pigtails." He then laughed with superior tone.

"Oh, so you did meddle. I suppose I should be happy it didn't turn out like last time." Tikki muttered with an eye roll.

"No! You can't keep holding that one time against me!" He argued back with a jab of his paw.

"It wasn't once, Plagg." The couple watched the kwamis argue back and forth for a few minutes before starting to laugh.

* * *

Chat Noir leapt over a building in hot pursuit of his Lady. "Did you lose sight of it?" He asked as she started to swing again.

"Yes, so keep your eyes peeled." She responded as she landed on another roof top.

He landed seconds later. "Sure, I don't imagine it would be hard to spot someone that colorful." He then smirked. "Few could sport such bold colors effectively aside from my Ladybug."

Ladybug rolled her eyes. "Focus, Chat Noir."

"Aww, come on. It's not like we aren't dating."

She let out a sigh. "I tell you this almost every time. Take this seriously!" She then swung back off leaving Chat slightly dejected. She didn't have a problem with his flirting for the past week, Fashion week aside. He used his staff to cross the street right when their quarry popped out from the ally.

"Now for the best story yet!" The akuma took pictures of the entire area and suddenly everything began to warp.

"Not again… Chat, your staff!" It had, unfortunately, gotten caught up in the picture and was now bending like a crazy straw.

Chat Noir scrambled from his weapon for the nearest roof. "Wha!?"

"I told you to take this seriously, Chat! You need to pay attention."

"I am paying attention!" The cat hero argued with irritation.

The colorful akuma raised her camera to get the heroes, but Ladybug used her yo-yo to lift a car obstructing her path. "We need to figure out her item before she warps the rest of Paris. She's making things ridiculous!" Chat frowned and looked over to officer Raincomprix appear to be taking a bribe, and a couple of dogs being snuck into a deli. She'd been turning Paris into a mess of cliché gossip stories. "It's probably the camera." Ladybug pointed out. "Since she's using it to change things." Chat Noir was still a little irked by her reaction to his flirt and didn't answer. Instead he jumped down behind the akuma as she ran around the vehicle. "Chat Noir!?"

"How about a tragic hero story?" The akuma proposed as she whirled around to try and take a picture.

"Sorry, but I don't appreciate made up stories about me." He dodged to the left and hopped over the car where Ladybug met him with an angry look.

"What were you thinking?"

"I was checking your theory, Ladybug. You know, being focused?" He over emphasized while crossing his arms.

Ladybug rolled her eyes knowing what had him irritated. "And?"

"I think it's the rolled up magazine at her waist. That fits her weird power better. So, focused enough for you?"

Ladybug grabbed him as the akuma began to snap a picture, and whisked them away. "Chat Noir, calm down. We can talk when the akuma is taken care of. Go for the Magazine, I'll distract her this time." She then swung off to do just that. Chat pouted as he watched from where she left him for an opening. Ladybug usually left the distraction up to him. Despite his wandering thoughts, he didn't want her thinking he wasn't focused, and kept his eyes open. After a few minutes and a few close calls, Ladybug was able to bind her arm and the camera to a light pole so he took his chance. "Cataclysm!" The magazine evaporated and the butterfly fluttered out. Ladybug caught it easily with a flick of her wrist, and released the pure white butterfly a moment later. "Now… Wait, Lila?"

The akuma was revealed to be none other than Lila Rossi. "This is starting to get dangerous. Is this her third or fourth time getting akumatized?" Chat wondered as the Italian scowled at them.

"Do you want to tell us what happened?" Ladybug asked in exasperation. Alya had mentioned needing to talk to her about some story with Lila, but with fashion week being so busy, she hadn't had the chance.

Chat Noir helped her up and she ripped her hand free as soon as she was standing. "I don't need anything from either of you!" She then stormed off which didn't bother either hero if they were being honest.

"She must've volunteered to be akumatized again." Ladybug determined with an eye roll.

"Or she was mad at what someone else did. It happens." Chat remarked as he crossed his arms again.

"Chat Noir, I need you to please calm down. I was telling you to focus because when you start to flirt, you make mistakes."

"As if I…" He stopped looking like he'd just thought about.

"Just remembered you lost your staff again didn't you?" The hero blushed as he dropped his arms. "Look, I don't mind flirting, but maybe not when we're supposed to be saving Paris? Time and place, kitty." She then gestured to his ring. "And speaking of time."

He looked down at his three remaining paw pads and made a fist. "Sorry… I guess I was just looking forward to being able to flirt as heroes. This is the first time since we started dating. Pound it?"

"Pound it." Ladybug reciprocated. "And I understand, Chat Noir, but-"

"I get it. Time and place." He repeated before leaping off to detransform.

* * *

Nino walked over to Alya who was on her phone, and started to snack on the large popcorn. The two of them were waiting to go on a double date with Adrien and Marinette who were running behind… again. "Texting Rose?" He asked as she reached out for some as well.

"Yeah. I sent her a video earlier about what I saw at the show. I was originally going to confront Marinette about whether she was blocking Lila on purpose, but figured with all the tabloid craziness, I could take a different approach. Mrs. Dufor did like to say 'if you can see it yourself, it was all the more true' after all. I got Marinette to let me back stage for Gabriel's show, and was able to record who was actually keeping Lila away from Adrien. It was Nathalie, and I even double checked and asked her when it was over. She was keeping Lila away so Marinette wouldn't get distracted since she was still new."

"Oh… That makes a lot of sense. I guess Lila just thought it was Marinette because it started when she got her internship." Nino reasoned in agreement.

"Yeah, makes sense. I'm so glad I did that instead of confronting Marinette. Bringing up Lila would have just stressed her out."

"Probably, but it kind of makes me wonder… You think maybe Marinette doesn't like her because she jumps to conclusions?"

"No, it's because Marinette thinks she's always lying, Nino." Alya corrected with a shrug. "Either way, crisis averted. I'll just start using Mrs. Dufor journalism check list from now on. According to her, a person's word is a terrible source without something to support it."

Nino shrugged back. "Whatever works I guess. Glad I'm not taking a journalism track. Just hearing you talk about it confuses me. Oh, hey, Adrien!" He waved once he saw his friend.

Marinette was dashing in right behind him slightly out of breath. "Sorry, there was an akuma, and my driver got stuck at a road block."

"An akuma!? I missed it!" She'd been so busy texting with the girls she hadn't even checked her alerts.

"It was a weird one, Alya, you were better off not getting caught in it. Mr. Ramir was turned into some crooked pigeon fight host. I didn't even know they had pigeon fights."

"Don't they do that with chickens?" Nino asked as he tried to picture it.

"Either way, it was really weird. It was everything I could do not to get transformed too."

Alya slid off the stool and handed Marinette and Adrien their tickets. "Well, I'll be sure to get some details after the movie then. Went ahead and got your tickets."

"Thanks, Alya. I'll go and get us some popcorn, Marinette. You pick the seats." Adrien then headed over to the line.

"I'll chill back with Adrien." Nino told the girls and waved them on to the theater.

Alya grabbed Marinette and went ahead without a word. "So, didn't you want to talk to me about something? Lila I think?" The designer did what she could to keep the bitterness out of her voice.

"Oh, nothing. I figured all of that out. Thanks for the back stage pass, by the way. It helped."

Marinette raised a surprised brow. She was thinking Lila had accused her of something. "Okay?" Alya flashed her a smile as she pulled into the darkened room.

* * *

"I have just been notified that Adrien and Marinette made it to the theater safely." Nathalie informed as she placed her tablet under her arm.

"Good, I was a little worried when that akuma started getting out of hand. Though in the end, Ms. Rossi's performance was a bit lacking this time around."

Nathalie had to agree. Ladybug hadn't even used her lucky charm. "With all due respect, sir, do you still think it's necessary to keep her around? She's already attempted to manipulate the press to get Adrien, as well as lied about Marinette to get you to dislike her."

Gabriel chuckled. "True she is very good at manipulating others, but all the more reason to keep her around wouldn't you say? Take everything she says with a grain of salt, and she should still prove useful. Of course if she attempts to manipulate the press against my favor, we should be ready to turn her on her head." He wore a sinister smile at the statement. If there was anything Gabriel was good at, it was dealing with press. It didn't matter if he had to ignore them or intimidate them. It was something he hoped Adrien would learn to do as well since confronting the press by proxy was more difficult. "And speaking of punishments, have you heard back from Vincent?"

Nathalie nodded. "Yes, he sent me a message with his boarding information. He should be back in Paris by the end of the week. He sends his regards for sponsoring his trip to visit family."

"I have no idea what you mean." The designer countered quickly looking disinterested and going through some papers.

"Excuse me, I mean he apologizes for breaking your trust, and appreciates your forgiveness in only suspending him." The assistant corrected with a slight smirk.

"Good, and make sure he understands that. I don't need Adrien finding out now after everything went so well."

"Yes, sir." She agreed.

"Now if only getting Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculous came so easy."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yup, that's it for this. This idea actually spawned three separate fics. This is no. 2. The original which was supposed to be a one shot quickly mutated, grew legs and walked off until it was 16 chapters long. I'll post that at a slightly later date. It'll have the same premise as this so if you liked this and want a deeper story with more emotion and more drama (and more Lila Salt) look forward to "The Internship".=^-^=

**Author's Note:**

> I picture Gabriel with sinister grin at the end, but at the same time it doesn't sound right. We all want this to happen right? It couldn't be evil. Gabriel is cold, but he does care. It makes it hard to write him out as anything but a jerk wad, but I tried to make it work. Now everyone, cheer for Gabriel's plotting!=^-^=


End file.
